


Is This What Love Feels Like

by msgeekstyle



Series: Evil Author Day 2021 [2]
Category: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Awkwardness, Baby Thranduil, Celeborn is a weirdo, Developing Relationship, Evil Author Day, Evil Author Day 2021, F/M, Flowers, Galadriel is awkward, but small child Thran, okay not baby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 23:07:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29461725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msgeekstyle/pseuds/msgeekstyle
Summary: Artanis meets Celeborn during her stay in Doriath. He is different than the elves she knows. A good different. But not everyone is entirely happy that the two spend so muh time together.
Relationships: Celeborn/Galadriel | Artanis
Series: Evil Author Day 2021 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2163963
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	Is This What Love Feels Like

The one they called Celeborn was a strange elf, Artanis had decided. They were all strange, those elves of  Doriath, but he stood out. He was one of their princes and yet she rarely heard him speak up and give orders, instead he seemed to prefer to blend into the background and listen. She couldn’t think of any princes in Aman who had done that, all of them too busy clamouring to be heard and fighting for the king’s favour like  elflings over a toy.

She had started to run into him often, sometimes several times a week, shortly after her and her brother’s arrival and it had taken her an embarrassingly long time to realise that he was seeking her out. There had been flowers, after that, and those at least she was used to.

She had never been known to be humble and the lords and princes of Aman were not known to be subtle. They had swarmed her, sometimes. All trying to win the  favor of the famed Artanis as if she was a price to be won. It had seemed sometimes as if they were falling over themselves to prove their strength and skill with a weapon, and indeed, a fair number had. For she was not only Artanis but also  Nerwen and her father and brothers had taught her well.

Few had taken well to her handling a weapon, fewer still hadn’t at least shown scepticism, and in the  end none had stayed for very long. Either leaving as soon as they got to know her desire to rule herself or slowly giving up when she did not faint into their arms even with time. One of the more memorable suitors even had to be forcibly removed from her father’s house and banned from ever returning.

No matter how it ended, they had all started with flowers. Roses, tulips, and orchids in all shades of pink and red. But Celeborn was different. Oh, he still gave her flowers but instead of the ones she knew so well by now there were daffodils and lilies and magnolias and even sweet peas. She may have kept those for the smell alone.

There had been some attempts at conversation between the two of them, with Artanis wearing her best awkward smile and Celeborn falling over his words, the tips of his ear turning bright red every time it happened.

He had tried poetry after and Artanis had been expecting, and more than half dreading, to hear the same verses all the other suitors had read her at one point, or maybe hear a few newer Sindarin poets wax poetic about the perils of romance but Celeborn had surprised her once again by writing everything himself.

It was, objectively, quite terrible and she more than once saw some poor elf that was about to intrude on the relative privacy of the small garden the two of them frequented shudder and turn around, and there may have been some cut-off laughter from behind some of the bushes nearby at one point or another, but she didn’t tell him to stop. Nobody had written anything just for her before.

One day she went to their spot, and when exactly it had become ‘their’ spot she didn’t know, only to find an  elfling sitting on the lower branches, swinging his feet in the air and leaning against the trunk.

Artanis hesitated. There hadn’t been many  elflings her age around when she was younger, and even fewer could be found in her grandfather’s court. When she got  older she had had no interest in dealing with little ones and nobody had forced her to. Why would they? There were always plenty of elves who delighted in caring for them and as a princess it was never going to be her responsibility anyway. But now there was nobody else around. She took a deep breath before stepping closer.

“Hello,  penneth .”, his eyes snapped to her, “What are you doing here all alone?”

The  elfling crossed his arms and raised his chin, clearly imitating someone with authority, though in her opinion the pouting face and still swinging feet kind of ruined the effect. “You are stealing my uncle.”

Of all the things she thought the little one could have said, this was not it. “What?”

“You are stealing my uncle. Stop it!” He swung his foot a little harder as if in emphasis and for a brief second Artanis worried he’d topple down the tree. “He is with you all the time and when he isn’t he talks about how pretty you are and how nice your hair is. Make it stop!”

Artanis didn’t know how to respond to this. The child obviously had to belong to Celeborn in some way, she faintly remembered being told that one of his cousins had a small child. Which made the elfling the young prince of Doriath. Not exactly someone whose wishes you would ordinarily decline. But then again, she had no idea how to  fulfill this particular one. Celeborn was the one to seek her out and it seemed beyond impolite to tell him to stop. Especially because she was the one currently intruding in his hometown and maybe, if she was completely honest with herself, she didn’t actually want him to stop.

She was saved from her dilemma by the arrival of soft footsteps and the sound of a by now familiar voice.

“ Thranduil ,” Celeborn admonished the  elfling still sitting in the tree, “what have we told you about bothering our guests?”

“Not to do it.”, the  elfling pulled his legs up and pouted even harder, “But she’s stealing you!”

The older elf sighed and stepped closer to the tree. “Nobody is stealing me.” He held out his arms. “Now come on, aunt Lúthien is waiting for you.”

Thranduil looked back at him with big, pleading eyes. “Promise?”

“Promise.”

The young prince regarded his uncle critically for a moment. “Okay!”, he finally said and slid down his branch and into his waiting arms.

Celeborn swung the  elfling around to delighted shrieks and settled him on one side.  Thranduil almost immediately started chattering about his day, Artanis apparently already forgotten. The older prince mouthed an ‘I’m sorry’ in her direction before turning around and walking back into the direction of the palace. She listened to him making all the right noises to his nephew’s story until they were out of earshot. She didn’t realise she was smiling until much later.

Life went on normally for the next few days. Artanis had feared Celeborn to be too embarrassed to seek her out but it didn’t seem so. He did apologise for his cousin the day after but when she simply waved him off he returned to his usual routine of seeking her out and giving her flowers.

It was about a week later when she saw  Thranduil again. She had found a small waterfall in one corner of the gardens, or, more accurately, the Lady  Lúthien had shown her the waterfall earlier and Artanis had decided to come back on her own.

There was a rustle interrupting the singing of the birds and then there was a small blond  elfling standing in front of her.

For a while he just stared at her, eyebrows furrowed and a critical look on his face. It was adorable.

“Uncle Celeborn said I should apologise,” he kicked the ground almost absentmindedly, “but Ada keeps laughing at him. And Nana says he should give you roses instead of those other weird flowers.”, he wrinkled his nose, “What’s so special about roses?”

Artanis blinked. “I don’t know,” she finally said, “I like the flowers your uncle is giving me.”

The small prince stood still and tilted his head. “Okay, I’ll tell him.” 

They were quiet for a bit. “This is boring!”, he declared eventually, crossing his little arms. “Wanna see a real waterfall?” He looked at her expectantly.

She thought about it. This little spot was exactly as quiet and peaceful as she hoped  Doriath would be. Then again, Celeborn would probably want the two of them to get along and the prince was young, whatever waterfall he wanted to show her couldn’t be very far away, right? She agreed and his face lit up like good tinder.

Turned out the way was longer than she had expected.  Thranduil was running ahead and back to her excitedly and she briefly wondered where he got that kind of energy, but he seemed to know the way well so she decided not to worry too much.

And it was kind of worth it, in the end. The small prince led her to a clearing that was flooded by sunlight. The trees around it where lush and green and right in the middle of it was the promised waterfall thundering down a cliff. Truth be told, it wasn’t the highest or most impressive waterfall she had ever seen. But the water was very clear and the sun lit everything up _ just so _ . It wasn’t like anything she had seen in  Aman, it was somehow almost  _ better _ .

They spent the rest of the afternoon in the clearing.  Thranduil had decided to show her all his favourite things about it, like the spot where the frogs always sunbathed or the tree on which the squirrel family lived. In turn Artanis showed him how to braid the small white flowers that grew everywhere into his hair.

The sun was low and the shadows stretched long already when she managed to convince her small companion to head back. They hadn’t been walking very long when she noticed  Thranduil falling behind. She stopped and turned around towards him, only to see him sit down and hug his knees to his chest.

“I’m tired.”,  Thranduil announced.

“We still have to get back.”

The small prince hugged himself tighter and looked up at her with round eyes. “I can’t walk anymore. I’m tired.” He was pouting now and were those tears in his eyes? What were you even supposed to do with crying  elflings ?

She decided to crouch down. “Hey,” she said softly, “how do you usually get back?”

Thranduil sniffled. “Uncle Celeborn carries me.”

Oh. Of course.

She held out her arms. “Come on, then.”

He stared at her. “Really? Aunt Lúthien says I’m too heavy.”

She smiled. “Well, your aunt Lúthien is smaller than I am.”

The small prince mulled that over.

“Okay.” He scrambled over into her arms.

Artanis got up and adjusted him the way she had seen other women do. She could fell him lean his head against her shoulder as she started walking.

“Your hair smells nice.”, a drowsy voice informed her from next to her ear.

She only hummed in response. His breathing against her neck was evening out and she adjusted her grip on him so as not to drop him. At least it shouldn’t take much longer to reach the palace grounds.

She was right. Soon after the trees around here started to become more familiar and only a short walk  later she reached the gardens.

Artanis made a beeline for one of the entrances, hoping there would be someone around to show her where to deposit the sleeping  elfling in her arms. Or even better, a member of the small prince’s family who could take over.

She didn’t have to wait long.

There was another elf walking around the next corner and  apparently they were both deep enough in thought that they almost collided. Almost.

Instead, they both stopped just in time and were now standing way too close to each other.

“Oh, he was with you.” Celeborn seemed relieved and Artanis belatedly realised that they probably should have told somebody where they were going. Or that they would be gone at all.

“I’m sorry,” she said sheepishly, “I didn’t think to tell anyone.”

He sighed. “I didn’t expect you to. But  Thranduil knows that he is supposed to at least tell people when he leaves.” He smiled wryly. “Getting him to simply stay here was nearly impossible.”

**Author's Note:**

> No idea when I'll finish this but I will (eventually)
> 
> My tumblr in case you want to come yell at me.
> 
> Comments are always appreciated <3


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